Things you should know before you pick up sewing

Where do you start when you find yourself interested in a new hobby? You start looking up everything that has to do with it. You scroll through blogs, watch videos on YouTube to learn techniques and projects, and Pinterest becomes an obsession. Now, what do you do when it’s time to start? We have the answers for that!

Explore your options

The world of sewing and quilting is not singular. There are so many ways to immerse yourself; exploring different genres of sewing is something we recommend people should think about first.

Are you someone who thrives off fashion? Look into learning clothing construction! From creating one-of-a-kind swimsuits to beautiful dresses, the world of sewists who focus on creating personalized looks is a niche in itself. Make adding details easy with presser feet that are versatile for projects that require zippers or piping. Look into machines for fashion like the JUKI HZL-F600, which helps you create garments from start to finish. Fashion has no rules, and its purpose is to make you feel great in what you wear.

If you’re someone who enjoys interior decorating, look into sewing for home décor! Creating custom curtains, table runners, ottomans, and fabric ornament is easy with the TL-2010Q! This machine can handle thicker, heavier materials. Accessories like a piping foot and gathering foot can bring a sense of personalization to pieces like curtains or pillows! Learn about textiles and fabrics like velvet or leather that are durable for home use but still handle beautifully and bring comfort to your space.

One category that is a beloved hobby is quilting! A family tradition, quilting is perfect for those that want to create art on a different type of canvas. It’s a magnificent way to immerse yourself in various fabrics and textures and allows you to have free range in what you can create. A machine like the Haruka TL-18QVP is perfect for beginners. Built like our industrial machines, it can handle heavy fabrics well and has settings for regular sewing as well when you decide to venture out from quilts. Since traditional quilts are made with three layers, you’ll need to learn about pieced tops, insulation fabrics, and backing fabrics. Look into wadding fabrics for your insulation layer like polyester wadding or cotton/poly to keep the warmth. For backing fabric, look into a popular option, such as quilting cotton.

Upcycle

Personalization and recycling old clothing is something that everyone loves to do. If you’re someone who enjoys embroidery and personalization look into machines like the Ricoh Ri 100 or Tajima Sai. They’re easy to use for beginners who want to add graphics to pre-loved garments. Whether you’re printing images you’ve created onto clothing or embroidering your brand logo onto hats, anyone can feel welcomed to the world of sewing through the vast options of what you can do.

Take a class!

Once you have an idea of what kind of sewing you want to go into, look around for sewing classes and expos in your area! The best way to learn is to dive into the community of people that have been doing this for centuries. Check out your local sewing machine shop for classes near you! Also, check out JUKI’s page for training and in-store classes.

Fashion Designer In Studio

Visit your local dealers!

When it’s time to take your place in the sewing world, visit your local shops that sell sewing machines, accessories, fabrics, and more. Those in the community who work in these shops are a great resource when you’re learning. They offer information on the best sewing machine for you and your projects. Also, these experts can provide you with options on fabrics for your projects and can set you up with the tools for success. Don’t forget! Many locations that sell sewing and quilting machines offer classes as well, and there’s no better way to learn than to hang out with the professionals.

If you’re interested in sewing or quilting, take the time today to figure out what you want to create! It’ll bring you one step closer to the fun part: bringing your vision to life!

Longarm Training with JUKI!

Hello JUKI lovers! We know how butterfly-inducing it is to get a new machine, but what about the aftermath of learning it? That’s why we’re here! Our JUKI Longarm training is for all types of quilters to join and learn more about techniques and tricks.

Get your pencils and notebooks ready because this 3-day workshop covers basic machine maintenance, tensions, working with different threads, batting, LCD screen operation, free-motion techniques, loading a quilt, marking quilts, ruler work, couching, pantographs, optional accessories, and more on the TL-2200QVP and Miyabi J-350QVP.

We also offer the opportunity to learn about our Quilters Creative Touch software. This workshop teaches you the basics of building blocks, pantographs, including the new Power Panto, designing your quilt pattern blocks, and move on to more advanced techniques such as Quilt CAD and Pattern CAD.

We offer JUKI Longarm training throughout the year with our Education staff to help you be the best quilter you can be! Thank you to those who have joined us in the past on our training, we hope you enjoy your JUKI and come back for more in the future!

Check out this link to see other training dates and sign up information. We hope to see you soon!

JUKI Sergers and You!

MO-654DE

This month we’re celebrating JUKI sergers! Looking to celebrate with us? With so many options, we compiled a list to make your choice a little bit easier.

Our MO-654DE and MO-644D, our most popular models, are perfect for beginners joining the serger world and experts who want professional results. These overlocks have JUKI Lovers raving about their ability to tackle any projects you throw at it! Each machine comes equipped with tools and technology that make the process of creating beautiful garments easy for you.         

The MO-735 is a quiet and stable combination of overlock and coverstitch that easily sews through several layers of fabric and works on thick materials, such as denim or leather. This machine is not only a great tool for designing clothes but for creating upholstery and various home decorations as well. Create all the projects you envisioned with the MO-735!

MO-1000

If you’re looking to waste no time on threading, the MO-2000QVP and MO-1000 are perfect for you! These air-threading machines make threading a breeze. With the press of a button, the looper threads are threaded for you. Additionally, these models also come with left and right needle threaders. It really can’t get much easier than that!

For our JUKI Lovers that have handled sergers and want to grow more, we recommend our MO-100 series. Beginner-friendly but still perfect for experts, our MO machines make things easier with a turn of a dial. With lay-in threading feature, quiet and simple operation, these overlocks can offer quality finishes to your projects!

MCS-1500

Lastly, our MCS Series is perfect for those looking for a professional coverhem finish. Our MCS-1500 can you help expand your creativity with an extensive range of functions and professional-looking stitches. The 3- and 4-thread coverstitch is perfect for various applications, such as hems, sleeve cuffs, and necklines. Perfect for the beautiful garments you make!

Whatever your project, we at JUKI want to make sure you find the best fit! What machine is on your wishlist?

Growing in Sewing

After some much-needed playtime on your new JUKI sewing machine, you want to start getting creative! This is where accessories come in. Below are a few recommendations for presser feet and accessories that will get your project done right.

Even Foot:
TL-18QVP: A9811-D25-0A0
TL-2200QVP Mini: A9811-D25-0A0

COMPUTERIZED & SEMI-INDUSTRIAL ACCESSORIES

Our first recommendation is JUKI’s walking foot or even feed foot. These feet are great for feeding thick fabric and other multi-layered projects. For example, when creating straight lines on quilts or sewing handbag straps, the walking foot is incredibly helpful in preventing the bottom and top fabric from bunching because it is feeding the material evenly.

Another recommendation is getting a zipper foot! JUKI has a variety of zipper feet available in different styles that allow you to sew close to the edge of the zipper teeth, piping, and other bulky edges. Zipper feet make it oh-so-simple to embellish fashion pieces, secure handbags, and more!

Our final recommendation in this series is the smooth foot. If you are looking to sew leather, vinyl, cork, and/or other hard-to-feed materials, this is the foot for you! Wanting a smoother go while you work on a project will help you achieve a clean, professional finish!

Glide Foot:
– TL-2200QVP: 40201924
– TL-2200QVP S: 40201924
– Miyabi J-350QVP: 40201924
– Miyabi J-350QVP S: 40201924
– J-150QVP: 40201924

QUILTING ACCESSORIES

Wow your friends and family with a one-of-kind quilt! Add ribbons, applique, and other embellishments with the glide foot! This bowl-shaped foot is an expert at going over three-dimensional embellishment when free motion quilting. Create beautiful designs with no stress!

Our Grip and Stitch makes free motion quilting easy and fun! Each pack comes with two different-sized disks that provide outstanding support. With the larger disk in your left hand and the smaller disk in your right hand, place the disks on top of your quilt and begin quilting. This gives you the ability to design funky spirals, beautiful feathers, and more!

Want to take your quilting to the next level? JUKI has the tool just for you! We have a wide variety of rulers at your disposal available. Created to help you get the design you want, our rulers can assist in straight stitching to clamshell designs.

Coverstitch Hem Guide:
MCS-1700QVP: 40177371

OVERLOCK AND COVERSTITCH

Looking to create straight hemlines on pants and shirt sleeves? Our coverstitch hem guide is the perfect tool for you! When it’s difficult to see the backside of your fabric, this guide can set the folded width of the fabric and align the edge of the fabric from the backside easily, minimizing the work for hemming.

Another recommendation is JUKI’s waste collector. This accessory is perfect for keeping your area tidy allowing you to throw out scraps as you sew. Also, it can be great storage for accessories to keep at an arm’s length.

When it comes to making sure you have the basic tools for your project, we highly recommend looking into the MO Kits. Available in set-piece sizes of 3, 6, and 8, these kits provide you with presser feet that can help you complete your project! Containing different feet in each set, we create these for practical sewing or decorative stitching on clothing.

Pocket Frame

EMBROIDERY

Getting the right tools can make embroidery set up so much faster! One recommendation we have is our magnetic frames. These accessories are offered in three different sizes and can help you embroider beautiful designs with clean stitching and faster speed on garments such as t-shirts, jackets, bags, and more!

We love embroidering designs onto our clothing and that’s why we created the pocket frame! This accessory is great for sleeves, pockets, cap side of parts, and much more; there are no limitations to your creations! Customizing garments for clients or your own just becomes more fun when you have the right tools to get it done how you imagined it.

Last but definitely not least, the most important part of sewing is needles! Our embroidery sewing needle pack is specially designed with a larger eye size to keep your threads from breakage. Our embroidery sewing titanium coating needle pack was created to last using Perfect Durability (PD), our needles are finished with titanium-nitride ceramic that gives you longer needle life when embroidering through tough materials. Cost-effective and durable is what these needles are all about!

JUKI knows that an accessory can make projects more enjoyable and easier for you! What accessory do you use on your projects?

JUKI Tajima Sai Virtual Training 2020

JUKI has scheduled an online training for owners and potential owners of this machine.  The training will take place live through Zoom.  There is NO CHARGE for this training.  All you have to do is sign up by sending this form to luann.hartley@juki.com

Training Date:  Thursday, November 12, 2020
Time:   1pm – 3pm  EST

Topics Covered in Training

  • Writer Plus Software
    • Creating Designs
    • Digitizing Tools
    • Assigning Colors/Needles
    • Photostitch
    • Sketchbook
  • Machine Operation
    • Navigating the LCD Screen
    • Assigning thread to needles
    • Positioning Designs
    • Creating color stops
    • Hat Hoop
    • Magnetic Hoop

There will be time for Q & A at the end of the training.

Once we receive the registration form, I will send you the zoom link for the class. We look forward to having you in our virtual consumer training event.  If you have any questions, please contact luann.hartley@juki.com.